Large churches fared better during recession

Churches can thrive despite the recessionLarger groups able to motivate members to give

JEANNIE KEVER, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Published 6:30 am, Sunday, February 6, 2011

The announcement that Houston's First Baptist Church raised $25.3 million during a three-year capital campaign — coinciding with the steepest economic slump in decades — suggests the recession has not been an equal-opportunity hammer.

"It was God's perfect timing," said Gregg Matte, senior pastor of First Baptist.

He and other church leaders had agreed to extend the campaign if members needed more time; instead, it ended on time and 20 percent over the goal.

Churches, synagogues and other religious organizations didn't escape the recession. A 2010 study found that more than half of church leaders said their organizations had suffered, with small institutions hit especially hard. Nationally, a few have filed for foreclosure or bankruptcy.

But researchers say that many larger institutions were able to minimize the pain through straight talk about the importance of giving, along with classes to boost members' financial savvy.

First Baptist was hit early, as some members fell behind on pledges after the 2008 stock market meltdown. The church, which draws more than 5,000 people every weekend, laid off 20 staff members, half of whom worked part-time, in early 2009.

But regular donations rebounded to support its $17 million annual operating budget, and the successful capital campaign is evidence that larger religious organizations have generally fared well.

"It's not as bad as everybody thinks," said Dave Travis, vice president and managing director of the Leadership Network, which works with large churches.

Most research, including that done by the Leadership Network, has focused on Christian churches, but other faith traditions felt the impact, too.

More synagogue members than usual have asked during the past two years to reduce their dues, which are based on income, said Rabbi Elliott Kleinman, chief program officer for the Union for Reform Judaism, which represents about 900 reform congregations across North America.

Personal finance

Large churches run increasingly sophisticated financial operations. Some offer automatic deduction and online giving to supplement the weekly collection plate and use their multimillion-dollar budgets for classes and activities far beyond the pulpit.

An increased emphasis on personal finance is part of that. First Baptist is among several dozen Houston-area churches to offer Financial Peace University, a series of classes based on author Dave Ramsey's financial planning program.

Matte said it is a way for modern churches to remain relevant.

"That's one of the things that's a very big challenge in marriages, in the family, in our personal lives," he said. "We want to have ministries that help teach people things that would help them in their day-to-day lives."

Relied on prayer

It also provides an opportunity to talk about giving, something Matte said is a natural for church leaders.

"It's part of a biblical life, to be a giver," he said. " What I've found is, the people who regularly give, they don't mind when you talk about money. The people who don't give, they don't like it when you talk about money."

Matte's latest book, Finding God's Will: Seek Him, Know Him, Take the Next Step, calls for using that understanding to make decisions about careers, relationships and, yes, finances.

First Baptist member David Trickett said he and other members relied upon prayer to meet the challenge of the capital campaign.

"I asked God to lay a number on my heart," Trickett said. "At the time, I didn't really know how I was going to meet that."

He worked in real estate when the campaign began; as the recession slowed sales, he and his wife, Kaye, decided to focus full time on a prison ministry they had begun several years earlier.

Still, he said, they managed to meet their pledge.

'God's economy'

First Baptist launched its $20 million campaign in late 2007 to update its facility, built when the church moved to its current location at Interstate 10 and Loop 610 in the 1970s.

Within a year, the economy had tanked. Matte said he never considered calling off the campaign.

"We told our people that if anybody needed longer than three years to fulfill their pledge, we understood," he said. "We wanted people to know we could wait."

But they didn't have to wait. As money rolled in, the church completed a $12.6 million improvement to its worship facilities. After that, demand for children's services, including a preschool program, grew by 35 percent, Matte said; the church will open a new children's building later this spring.

Ten percent pledged for outreach already has been spent, much of it given to Houston churches for repairs and renovations.

It also used money to pay off debt, which church spokesman Steven Murray said would save about $1 million a year previously earmarked for interest payments.